Product Description

A day does not pass without a newspaper report about yet another company that has started outsourcing technology or other business processes to India. The Senate recently voted 70 to 26 in favor of preventing federal contracts going offshore, yet US managers continue to beat a path to India because it is the global leader for offshore IT-enabled services. Many CEOs seek to reduce their costs or improve service quality, but not many understand India on their first visit and some are confused by the culture. In this book author Mark Kobayashi-Hillary introduces India and the major players in the Indian service industry. He offers a balanced view on the trend to outsource to India, describing the reasons why a business should utilize India as an offshore outsourcing destination and the steps needed to find and work with a local partner. Not only does the book make a compelling economic case for outsourcing to this region, it also discusses how to manage the entire transition process, including the potential impact on local resources. Mark Kobayashi-Hillary is a British writer and independent outsourcing consultant based in London. He has worked at a senior level for several leading banking and technology groups and has been involved in managing outsourced relationships in the UK, Singapore and India. He is a regular commentator on India and outsourcing in the European press. Outsourcing To India is written from personal experience and several years of research. This practical guide will help managers navigate through the offshore outsourcing maze, allowing them to avoid many of the major pitfalls others have faced when setting up shop in India.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1313186 in Books
• Published on: 2005-04-19
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 321 pages

Review
From the reviews of the second edition:

"This second edition has been completely revised the publisher claim, with up-to-date information on the latest state of development in the country. a ] this book still offers valuable information about the IT-enabled service industries in this continent. The current second edition is a useful text for anyone who is looking to the future for involvement with a country that is already making its mark in IT and offers potentially not only a flourishing market but also growing pool of IT workers." (W. R. Howard, Kybernetes, Vol. 37 (1), 2008)

From the Publisher
"Outsourcing to India: The Offshore Advantage" is designed to be read in a number of ways. You can sit and read it straight through as the chapters follow the logical progression of steps required to work with an outsourcing partner in India:

- India itself is introduced by chapters 1 through to 6, with information on history, politics and travel. - The outsourcing industry in India is profiled by chapters 7 to 11, with information on the major players and locations. - Chapters 12 to 23 constitute the management checklist; a step-by-step guide to outsourcing to India. Alternatively, the individual chapters can be read as primers on each subject area, or the three main chapter groups can be read individually in order to focus on those specific areas. "Outsourcing to India: The Offshore Advantage" offers you the knowledge that you need to work in India, creating a successful outsourcing strategy for your organization.

From the Author
When I first started working with Indian teams I looked in the bookstore for information. There were many guides to India, for backpackers or those interested in ancient history. There were some academic outsourcing guides, full of arcane charts and diagrams depicting the potential ROI of a transition programme. However there was nothing about the practical aspects of being a foreign manager trying to set up an offshore outsourcing contract in India.

This book is targeted at professional managers with a requirement to understand the offshoring process, with a focus on India for non-Indians. Offshore outsourcing is becoming one of the major areas of management where there is a huge shortage of skilled professionals and this book aims to address this issue through practical guidance.

I have found through experience that some knowledge of the history, culture and food of India can really help when doing business. Understanding the sourcing industry sector is also essential when first trying to ascertain who you should partner with (or whether you should just open shop yourself). All this information and a step-by-step guide to the common pitfalls at various stages of the outsourcing process are included in my book.

I wish that I could have bought this book at an airport bookstore the first time I travelled to India on business.

Customer Reviews

Essential read for companies planning outsourcing
Not many books have been written on this subject yet, although it is becoming ever more important to companies in the West seeking to outsource work to cut costs and improve flexibility.

This book helped me enormously to understand the challenges and problems I was likely to encounter. I would recommend it to anyone who is starting to look at India.

Outsourcing to India
I have read other books on this subject which are boring and content-free. This book is very readable and gives an excellent insight into where and how to take your BPO project, the issues you are likely to encounter, and into building the relationships to make an outsource project work.

There is something for everyone involved in outsourcing in this book.

A Good Read !
This book has several notable strengths. Author Mark Kobayashi-Hillary, an outsourcing consultant, combines detailed information about India with in-depth knowledge of outsourcing markets, processes and methods. He provides an overview of India and a profile of India's outsourcing industry, including the major players in a rapidly changing marketplace, important aspects of cultural awareness and thoughts on how to organize your outsourcing endeavor, including vendor selection and contract provisions. At times, the organizational structure of the book is somewhat disorienting, shifting focus from travel guide to outsourcing primer to nuts-and-bolts analysis of India's outsourcing market and how best to capitalize on it. Occasionally the narrative flow is a bit mechanical, but who really cares? If your company is considering or already has a major investment in offshore outsourcing in India, this book is an outright must read. Despite its structural flaws, we strongly recommend its authoritative blend of practical business, legal and cultural advice.